Defeat for Chatham Town Women last Sunday all-but-ended their hopes of promotion this season.

Chats were beaten 2-0 at home by Norwich City, a result which dropped them to fourth place in the National League Division 1 South East table.

League leaders Real Bedford are six points ahead of Chats, have a far better goal difference and have played a game less.

With four games left for Chatham, manager Keith Boanas knows that weekend result was one blow too many for their promotion hopes.

Boanas said: “I'd already accepted the fact we'd probably lost the title with the draw against QPR. Sunday was more about just proving that we deserved to be up there still.

“The two goals we conceded [in the first half] were both really sloppy. We came out better after a chat at half-time and 15 minutes in made some changes, because people had burned out energy-wise.

“We were chucking in corners and creating opportunities, but no one was getting on the end of them, and nothing with any purpose in and around the penalty area. So, although we played well, and afterwards, I said I wasn't angry with the players, I think they all tried to implement the game plan, they all tried to do their individual jobs, but it was individual errors that cost us.

“On reflection of actual performance levels a draw would probably have been a fair result overall, but we defended badly twice, we have to hold our hands up to that, and basically gave them the two goals through those rash decisions. That was what was disappointing.

“We’ve been in the [promotion] mix from the start but football can be cruel. There's games we've definitely lost that we didn't deserve to lose, there's games we've won where we've played worse than the games we've lost.

“Consistency is always the key thing. I think missing certain players at vital times for different reasons did affect us, but I'm not going to use that as an excuse, I’m not Ange Postecoglou!”

Chatham do still have at least two cup finals to look forward to and a chance to finish the season with some silverware. They face Dartford in the final of the DFDS Kent Women’s Cup and play Billericay in the Isthmian League Women’s Cup.

On Tuesday night Chats the thumped Margate 14-0 in the quarter-final of the Combined Counties Cup.

Amelia Woodgate scored six of the goals in a game against a Margate side managed by her dad. Otesah Charles (2), Grace Laverick, Lottie Sharpe (3), Millier Rayner and an own-goal added to the tally.

Boanas said: “I’m disappointed for the players and as much as I was disappointed in the mistakes [on Sunday] I'm not disappointed in the effort overall, and the application of the players.

“I couldn't feel any anger, I just felt really frustrated and upset for them. Without some kind of divine intervention, it's put the nail in the coffin on the title and promotion.

“We now want to finish the season at the highest level we can and if we can win one of those cup competitions it will be the first trophy under the Chatham name.

“Kevin (Hake, the chairman) wanted us to get into the Kent Cup final, or get a trophy and get Chatham Town Women's name on it. If we can do that in one of the cup competitions and stay in the top three, then I suppose on paper we've had a good season.

“We've had a far better season than last year. You might say it's a lower level, but the quality of the teams isn't massively different. Norwich have proved to be really strong opponents.

“Aims and intentions are to still to carry on winning, still to finish as high as we can in the league, through pride, if nothing else, and we deserve to finish in the top three.

“We've dropped to fourth now but we've got a game in hand as well, and I think all the games we've got left are winnable. We’ve got to keep the momentum going now and try and get back on the winning track.

“It's hard for me to say I'm happy with the season, even if somebody else says it's okay, it's not for me.

“We've probably punched above our weight to a point. London Bees are attached to Barnet and Norwich are attached to Norwich City.

“Bedford are funded by a Bitcoin millionaire. We're up there punching with clubs that have got bigger backing than us. That goes back to my days at Charlton when it was [up against] Fulham and Arsenal. It's a situation I'm kind of used to.

“We’ve had two draws against [league leaders] Bedford, two close games with Norwich. We beat London Bees twice, which we didn't do last year. It shows where we should be but unfortunately there's only one team going up.

“The big disappointments are the earlier games against Actonians and probably the draws against QPR. The Norwich game and the QPR game were 100 per cent affected by poor officiating. That seems to happen at every level.

“I'm convinced if we'd have buried the amount of chances we created, we'd have won every game by clear margins. Maybe that's something we've got to look at.”

Chatham return to league action away against Ashford Town (Middlesex) on Sunday, March 23.

Their Isthmian Women’s Cup final against Billericay is at the Essex side’s New Lodge ground on Wednesday, April 2 and they play Dartford on Thursday, May 1 in the Kent Cup final at Maidstone’s Gallagher Stadium.